OXFORD, Ohio - In its final
tune-up before beginning outdoor competition, the Miami University men's track and
field team will go head-to-head with rival Cincinnati in an indoor dual meet
Friday evening on the campus of Capital University in Columbus. Although the
RedHawks do not officially sponsor indoor track, the NCAA allows teams to
compete at three indoor meets during the season with the dual meet against the
Bearcats Miami's second and final indoor meet this year.

Because
neither school has a suitable indoor facility for the meet, the longtime
combatants will compete on neutral ground at The Capital Center, which is
Capital's recreation facility. The meet begins at 6:30 p.m. with three field
events (weight throw, high jump and long jump) while the final field event is
the triple jump at 7:45. Action on the track begins at 7:30 p.m. with the
prelims of the 60m hurdles followed by 60m dash prelims. The final individual
race is the 3000m run while the 4x400m relay concludes the dual at 8:38 p.m.

Although
the RedHawks and Bearcats have not met in a dual meet recently, the two
neighboring schools have squared off head-to-head 24 times previously with the
teams splitting them, as each team has 12 victories. Of the 15 events to be
contested, Miami has the better seed time/mark in eight events while Cincinnati
has the top seed in the other seven, making for what should be an even dual.
The two teams each are favored in three field events while Miami holds a 5-4
edge on paper in track events.

Junior
Jahquil Hargrove (Norristown, Pa.) holds the top seed time in both the 200m
dash (22.25) and 400m dash (49.00) while classmate Kevin Brown (Lewis Center,
Ohio) has the top time in the 600m run (1:20.29). In the 800m run, senior Jack
Spilman (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) boasts the top seed (1:53.45) while classmate
Jarrod Eick (Hartville, Ohio) has the best time in the mile (4:10.00).

In
field events, freshman Peter Stefanski (Aurora, Ill.) has the best mark in the high
jump (2.10m) while junior Sam Spallinger (Pandora, Ohio) is tops in the long
jump (7.29m) and classmate Rob Stein (Villa Park, Ill.) ranks first in the shot
put (15.50m).

In
Miami's first indoor meet of the season, the RedHawks posted nine top-five
finishes at the Buckeye Tune-Up Feb. 15, hosted by Ohio State. Eick earned
Miami's lone win, capturing the 1000m run in a personal-best 2:29.68 while
junior Wade Coffin (Willoughby, Ohio) was second. In the 600m run, Brown was
the runner-up. Stefanski had a strong collegiate debut, taking second in the
high jump as he tied the top clearance but needed an extra attempt. Spallinger
placed third in the long jump while senior Sam Wildeman (Naperville, Ill.) took
third in the pole vault.

The
RedHawks open outdoor season March 22-23 at the Vanderbilt Black and Gold
Invitational in Nashville, Tenn.